Sri Lanka Wildlife & Nature

The Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka (FOGSL) is the premier ornithology and research organization in Sri Lanka. It was founded in 1976 and is still led by Prof. Sarath Kotagama of the Department of Zoology, University of Colombo. Its academic connections ensure a research focus but educational activities are also paramount. Several books and booklets have been authored by Prof. Kotagama, mostly to provide field guides as a way of nurturing a love and knowledge of birds and other wildlife amongst ordinary Sri Lankans, such pursuits heretofore being the general province of the elites and foreigners.

http://www.wwct.org/

Focus on the Sri Lanka leopard Panthera pardus kotiya. Lots of interesting material on this iconic species. Sri Lanka is the best country in the world for watching leopards. May it always be so!'.

http://rukrakaganno.sacredcat.org/

Rukrakaganno is an indigenous NGO that promotes forest protection in Sri Lanka. This is a very valuable effort considering the pressure on the island's natural forests from population increases and business greed.

http://www.wnpssl.org/

The grandfather of wildlife organizations in Sri Lanka, the WNPS over the years (it was founded in 1894) has been instrumental in Sri Lanka's extraordinary adoption of enlightened wildlife conservation policies. Its formerly lone status as a wildlife lobby
and its close connections to the political and cultural elites of the day ensured that it got heard in all the proper chambers. The WNPS has had its vicissitudes and its flagship journal The Loris has varied in quality (it is now commendable in its more observation-orientated approach) but its legacy is stellar and the organization is still very much the prime gathering place for wildlife and nature enthusiasts in Sri Lanka.

http://www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/sri-lanka/index.htm

Sri Lanka field trip reports.

http://www.bsc-eoc.org/avibase/checklist.jsp?lang=EN®ion=lk&list=clements

Please note that, in other taxonomic tallies of Sri Lanka's birds, both the vernacular and scientific binomials can be different from Clements' list. Several books have recently covered Sri Lanka's avifauna and there is no exact consistency (often for good reasons). Jetwing.eco's field list is the handiest of the lot but, with its tourist focus, it tends to emphasize the splits (hence more 'endemics'), a tendency cautioned against by some authorities.

http://www.bsc-eoc.org/links/links.jsp

A large archive of Sri Lanka bird trip reports.

http://www.orientalbirdclub.org/

Excellent birdwatchers' club with emphasis on regional birds and has a superb magazine, Birding Asia.

http://www.travellingbirder.com/birdwatching/birding_Sri%20Lanka.php?from=1&to=12

At least 69 different bird trip reports from around the island, some by famed ornithologists such as Craig Robson.

http://www.ramsar.org/profile/profiles_srilanka.htm

Official descriptions of Sri Lankan wetland sites of international importance.

http://www.jetwingeco.com/index.cfm?mid=5&id=889&sid=889&iid=5§ion=sectionsub&list=0

The Jetwing organization, fronted by its Eco group, has done a great job of promoting responsible ecotourism in Sri Lanka. JetwingEco's CEO Gehan de Sylva Wijeyeratne has authored numerous best-selling wildlife field guides and coffee-table books. JetwingEco also publishes the unique periodical on Sri Lanka wildlife and nature, 'Sri Lanka Wildlife News', that is reproduced in the Serendib Inc website.

courtesy of A.C Yapa

Posted on Tuesday, December 30, 2008 (Archive on Tuesday, January 06, 2009)
Posted by Hiran Contributed by Hiran

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